Manufacture of shoes



Jan. 21, 1936. C. F..PYM 2,028,245

MANUFACTURE OF SHOES Filed Feb. 20, 1935 I 3 Sheets-Sheet l //WE/\/ 70/? We? w,

' Jan. 21, 1936. c PYM MANUFACTURE OF snows Filed Feb. 20, 1935 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 AWE/V70 7 QAMLDQP Jan. 21, 1936. c. F. PYM 2,028,245

IANUFACTURE OF SHOES- Filed Feb. 20, 1935 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Jam 2 1,1 1936 Charles F. Pym, deceased, late of Beverly, Masa,

by Arthur F. Pym, executor, Swampscott, Mass.,

, assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Paterson, N. 1., a corporation of New Jer Application February 20, 1935, Serial No. 1,433

9 Claims.

ing of the toe, and heel ends of shoes of a type in which the margin of the upper in lasted position lies in generally parallel relation to the bottom of the last; but it is to be understood that it is not limited to the manufacture of shoes of that particular type nor to the lasting of the ends of shoes. It has been proposed heretofore to fasten uppers in lasted position by the use of a thermoplastic adhesive, 1. e., an adhesive which is rendered tacky by heat but is normally in a nontacky condition, the adhesive being applied to one or more of the shoe parts prior to the lasting operation. For the best results such an adhesive should be left in an inactive or non-tacky condition until immediatelyprior to the laying or pressing of the margin of the upper in final lasted relation to the sole, and should then be activated by heat so that it will secure the uppereffectively in the position which the latter assumes in response to the final overlaying pressure. In lasting the toe, for example, this procedure permits the customary shaping or wiping of the diiferent layers of the upper materials preliminarily over the sole, followed by the trimming away of the surplus margin of the lining and the toe box, without interference by the adhesive; and in lasting the heel end also insurance is thus afforded that the different layers of the upper materials, including the lining and the counter flange, will not stick together prematurely. There are, how-' ever, difiiculties in applying heat such as to activate the adhesive properly at the above-mentioned stage in the lasting operation, since the adhesive may stick more or less to a heated tool placed in contact therewith, and since at the heel end any adhesive on the margin of the insole under the inwardly projecting flange of a molded counter, as well as on the lower face of the counter flange, is practically inaccessible to a heated tool. a

The present invention provides a novel method whereby the above and other difiiculties involved heretofore in the use of thermoplastic adhesive in lasting are overcome. In accordance with this method the adhesive-is activated at the required time by a hot gaseous medium in contact therewith. Conveniently, as herein illustrated, a blow torch may be used for the purpose in view. Under some conditions the flame of the blow torch may contact directly with the adhesive for the comparatively short time necessaryto soften the latter, while under other conditions it may be preferable to subject the adhesive to the action of the 5 hot gases generated by the blow torch without direct contact with the flame. It will be readily understood that, in either case, the necessary heat is effectively applied in this manner, wherever the adhesive may be located, since the hot gases readi 1o ly penetrate to locations not conveniently accessible to other heating means.

The novel method will now be more particularly described by reference to the, accompanying drawings and thereafter pointed out in the claims. 15

over the insole in the lasting of the toe endof 25 a the shoe'in a bed-lasting machine;

Fig. 4 illustrates the later step of removing the surplus margin of the lining and toe box;

Fig. 5 shows how the adhesive on the toe end of the insole may thereafter be activated by use of 30 a blow-torch;

Fig. 6 illustrates the subsequent step of wiping the margin of the toe end of the upper into final lasted position where it is secured by the adhesive;

Fig. '7 is a perspective view showing how the marginal portion of the heel end of the upper materials, including the counter shown in Fig. 2, may be lasted preliminarily over the insole by the heel wipers of the bed-lasting machine; 40

Fig. 8 illustrates how the adhesive on the heel end of the insole and on thecount'er flange may be thereafter activated by use ofthe blow-torch;

and I Fig. 9 illustrates the subsequent step of wiping us the marginal portion of the heel end of the upper materials intoflnal lasted position.

The insole l0 shown in Fig. 1 has thermoplastic i adhesive applied on its bottom face along the margin of its toe and heel ends as indicated at 50 2 while it is in a fluid state and preferably, as illustrated, beforethe insole is mounted on a last and before the counter is assembled with other upper materials. It is contemplated that sealing wax, shellac or any other suitable thermoplastic adhesive may be used for the purposes in view. After the adhesive has been applied it will quickly assume a non-tacky condition, so that the parts may be handled without inconvenience.

The insole treated as described will be mounted on a last, and the counter will be assembled on the last with other upper materials in the customary manner. In the shoe herein shown the upper materials at the toe end comprise, in addition to the outer layer 24 of upper leather, a lining 28 and a toe box 28 (Fig: 4). At the heel end the counter is between the upper leather and the lining. The shoe may nextbe subjected to the usual pulling-over operation, and may then be lasted along the sides between its toe and heel end portions. In the shoe herein shown the upper along the shank and ball portions of the shoe is secured in lasted position by staples s driven by a lasting machine of the type disclosed in Letters Patent No. 1,815,295, granted on July 21, 1931 upon an application of George Goddu, but as far as the lasting of the toe and heel ends of the shoe is concerned the present invention is not dependent upon the character of the side-lasting operation nor upon the manner in which the upper is secured in lasted position along the sides.

The tee and heel ends of the shoe may be conveniently lasted by the aid of a bed-lasting machine of a well-known type, features of which are disclosed in Letters Patent No. 1,284,870, granted on November 12, 1918 upon an application of Matthias Brock. Such a machine includes toe wipers 30 (Fig. 3) for wiping the toe end of the upper materials heightwise of the last and inwardly over the insole, and may have also, as herein illustrated, a toe band 32 to assist in shaping the upper to the end and side faces of the last, although such a toe band may be and is often omitted. In accordance with the general practice in-lasting the toe ends of shoes with adhesive, the upper materials may be wiped heightwise of the toe and the marginal portion of the diiferent layers of the materials wiped inwardly over the insole by use of the wipers 30, as illustrated in Fig. 3, after which the wipers will be retracted from over the shoe bottom and preferably lowered as shown in Fig. 4 and the surplus margin of the lining and the toe box will be removed-by the use, for example, of a hand trimming knife 34. It will be understood that such a preliminary wiping of the margin of the materials over the insole serves to crease the lining and the toe box at the edge of the insole and thus to assist the operator in determining how much of these two layers of the materials to remove by the knife 34. Notwithstanding the fact that the adhesive 1 2 used in lasting the toe is already on the margin of the insole when this inward wipe takes place, the adhesive does not interfere with the wiping operation and the subsequent separation of the margin of the materials from the insole to permit the I trimming of the lining and the toe box, since it is trated (Fig. 5), the heat is then applied by the use of a blow torch 36 which the operator holds in one hand and the flame of which may, if desired, actually contact with the adhesive, the blow torch being moved to activate the adhesive progressively all around the toe. The toe wipers 30 are then immediately advanced and closed to wipe the margin of the 'untrimmedouter layer of the upper materials into final lasted position, as illustrated in Fig. 6, .where it is secured to the insole by the adhesive. It will be understood that the adhesive will 'cool and harden rapidly, especially if the wipers are in an unheated condition, and therefore the wipers need not remain in upper-holding position for any substantial length of time, althoughit may be convenient to leave them in that position while lasting the heel end of the shoe if the heel end is lasted after the toe end.

For use in lasting the heel end of the shoe a machine of the previously mentioned type includes a heel band 38 (Figs. '7, 8 and 9) which clamps the upper materials about the heel end of the last and wipers 40 whereby the marginal portion of the materials is wiped over the insole and pressed upon the insole. It will be understood that if a; previously molded counter, such as shown, is used in the manufacture of the shoe, its flange 18 will extend inwardly over the insole before the heel end of the shoe is lasted, and the margin of the lining, shown at 42 (Fig. 7), will extend inwardly between the counter flange and the adhesive l4 on the heel end of the insole. Since, however, the adhesive on the insole and on the counter flange isin an inactive condition, the margin of the lining will not stick to the insole or to the counter flange prior to the lasting operation. While the adhesive is still inactive, the wipers 40 are preferably utilized to wipe the margin of the upper leather preliminarily inward over the counter flange and to press it with the counter flange and the margin of the lining down upon the shoebottom to shape the several'layers of materials while they are still free to shift relatively to one another. Thereafter the wipers are retracted, permitting the margins of the different layers to spring up more or less from the insole and to separate somewhat from one another, and

the adhesive on the counter flange and on the insole is then activated by use of the blow-torch 36, as illustrated in Fig. 8. In this operation the flame may or may not actually contact with the adhesive, since enough heat will reach the adhesive if the flame is in close proximity to the shoe. It will be evident that the blow-torch thus serves as particularly efiective means for applying the necessary heat to the adhesive on the insole and on the lower face of the counter flange where the adhesive is comparatively diflicult to reach but where the hot gases from the blow-torch will readily penetrate. It will be understood that the blow-torch will be moved'to apply the heat progressively around the heel end of the shoe bottom, as in operating at the toe end of the shoe.v

After the adhesive has thus been activated, the

I heelwipers 40 are again advanced and closed to removed and the heel wipers being in an unheated condition, the adhesive rapidly cools and hardens, so that the wipers need remain in upper-holds ing position only a very short time. They are then retracted and the shoe released from the machine.

It will be understood that either one or both ends of the shoe may be lasted as described and that the novel method also may be applied to the lasting of other portions. Furthermore, consistently with the objects in view, the mode of procedure above outlined may be varied more or less as may be desirable under different conditions. At the toe end, for example, the adhesive may be applied to the margin of the upper as well as to the insole or, if desired, to the upper alone.

The novel method having been fully described, what is claimed as new and what it is desired to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists in applying a thermoplastic adhesive to at least one of the parts of a shoe comprising an upper and a sole for use in fastening the upper in lasted relation to the sole, beginning the lasting of the portion of the upper to be fastened by said adhesive while the adhesive is in a nontacky condition, and before disposing the upper in final lasted position upon the sole applying a hot gaseous medium in contact with the adhesive to render it tacky.

2. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists in applying a thermoplastic adhesive to at least one of the parts of a shoe comprising an upper and a sole for use in fasten ing the margin of the upper over the bottom of a last in lasted relation to the sole, performing a portion of the lasting operation including the laying of the margin of the upper preliminarily inward over the sole while said adhesive is 'in a non-tacky condition, thereafter at least partially releasing the overlaid margin of the upper and applying a hot gaseous medium in contact with the adhesive to render it tacky, and then laying the margin of the upper in position to be fastened .to the sole by the adhesive and permitting the adhesive to cool and harden.

3. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists in applying a thermoplastic adhesiveto an insole, lasting the margin of an upper preliminarily inward over the adhesive on the insole while the adhesive is in a non-tacky condition, permitting the margin of the upper to retract and expose the adhesive, thereafter applying a hot gaseous medium in contact with the adhesive to render it tacky, and then disposing the margin of the upper in position to be secured to the insole by the adhesive.

- 4. That improvement in methods of -making' shoes which consists in applying a thermoplastic adhesive to the toe end of an insole, wiping the margin of a plurality of layers of upper materials inwardly over the adhesive on the insolewhile the adhesive is in a non-tacky condition, releasing said margin and removing surplus material from one or more of said layers, applying a hotgaseous medium in contact-with the adhesive to render it tacky. and then wiping what remains of the margin of the toe end of the upper materials inwardlyinto position to be secured to the insole by the adhesive.

5. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists in applying a thermoplastic adhesive to at least one of the parts of a shoe comprising an upper and a sole for use in fastening the upper in lasted relation to the sole and permitting the adhesive to assume .a non-tacky condition, and before disposing the upper in final lasted relation to the sole rendering the adhesive tacky by the heat of a flame adjacent thereto.

6. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists in applyinga thermoplastic adhesive to at least one of the parts of a. shoe comprising an upper and an insole for use in fastening the margin of the upper in lasted po-' shoes which consists inassembling on a last shoe parts comprising an upper and an insole with a thermoplastic adhesive in a non-tacky condition onat least one of said parts for securing the toe end of the upper in lasted relation to the insole, the upper including at the toe end a plurality of layers of materials, wiping the margin of the several layers of upper materials at the toe end inwardly over the insole by the wipers 'of a lasting machine while the adhesive is still in a nontacky condition, retracting the wipers and trimming the margin of one or more of the layers of upper materials, then softening the adhesive by the heat of a blow torch, and thereafter wiping what remains of the margin of the toe end of the upper materials over the insole into position to be secured to the insole by the adhesive.

. 8. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists in applying a thermoplastic adhesive to the heel end of an insole and to both 'sides of the flange of a counter, lasting the margin of the heel-end portion of upper materials including thecounter preliminarily over the insole while said adhesive is in a non-tacky condition, thereafter releasing said margin and applying a hot gaseous medium in contact with the adhesive on the insole and counter flange to render it tacky, andthen laying the'margin of the materials in final lasted position.

9. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists in applying a thermoplastic the margin of the heel-end portion of upper ma terials including the .counter over the insole. and

before disposing said margin in final lasted relation to the insole-softening the adhesive on the @adhesive to the heel end of an insole and to both 1 sides of the flange of a molded counter, lasting. 

